Allens Speak Louder Than Words
by Princess Pinky
Summary: A one shot, in which President Mackenzie Spencer Allen and her Vice President, Jim Gardner, sit in the Oval Office on their last night of Mac's Presidency, and reflect on their last ten years in the White House.


A/N: This is my first _Commander in Chief_ fanfiction, and probably my last. (Unless I decide to write a "real" season/series finale to season one.) This story takes place on Mackenzie's very last day in office. I really wanted to write a CiC fic, and I think this is the perfect way to do it. I'm not politics savvy, which is why I can't write a series like I'd love to do. By the way, I'd just like to point out that as I was writing this fanfic, I discovered that there was another story very similar to it by **Lara Cox**, on FFN. It's called, _The Time of My Life_. There are a few major differences, which you'll see if you read both, and a few big similarities. I've already contacted her about this, and she said she didn't mind if I posted my story.

_**Allens Speak Louder Than Words**_

Mackenzie Allen's amber eyes washed over the Oval Office. She stood erect in the doorway of the office in which she'd occupied for the last ten years. Ten years! Her proud shadow spread across the floor in front of her, making a dark line down the center of the room. The President pursed her cherry red lips. She moved into the office. The most powerful office in the land. Her office.

"We've had a good run, haven't we?"

Mackenzie turned towards the sound. She smiled as she saw a strong, African American man in the doorway. "Jim."

"May I come in?"

"Do you even have to ask?"

Jim Gardner smiled. He crossed the Oval Office, stopping before the desk of the President of the United States. He touched the surface of the glossy wood with his right hand. "Madame President?"

"Madame President?" Mackenzie laughed. "Jim, you haven't called me 'Madame President' outside of public in years! What's going on?" Her face turned serious. "Is something wrong?"

Jim shook his head. "I just wanted to tell you how proud I am." He moved across the room, examining the pictures framed across the walls. Most of her Mackenzie Allen, the first female President. The first Independent President, unless you counted George Washington, of course.

"I know we had our differences." He smiled slightly. "Still have our differences. Me, being a Republican, you an Independent." He stopped at a framed newspaper clipping of him and Mac, taken on the day they'd won their first Presidential election. "But I just wanted to know that I have the utmost respect for you and everything you've done for this country. You were just what we all needed. Someone who was honest, and not afraid to play by the rules."

Jim Gardner turned quickly, locking his dark eyes with his Commander in Chief. "You were a dream come true for so many Americans, Mac. You were a role model for girls, women, boys, and men alike. You proved that it's possible to have your own ideals and morals, outside of a political party. And you didn't stop there. You brought together the Republicans and the Democrats. Not to say that there wasn't a lot of bickering along the way, but somehow you managed to pull off an Administration composed of everything. Hell! You even threw a Libertarian into the mix."

Mac chuckled. "Meril Murphy was a tough old bird, I'll give her that. But next to you, she was the best damn Chief of Staff a President could ever ask for." The President rolled her eyes. "And she sure as hell whipped the Democrats and Republicans alike into shape." She crossed her arms. "Did she ever get along with any of the staff?"

"Kelly." Jim craned his head to the side, thinking. "And Vince, I think." He absently tapped his chin. "I think he secretly reminded her of the son she lost to AIDS."

Mackenzie lightly touched the skirt of her silvery-gray suit. She smoothed its wrinkles. "She was a brilliant woman."

"I really never thought you'd hire her."

Mac looked up, surprised. "Why?" She narrowed her eyes. "Because she was a Libertarian?"

"Of course not!" Jim's brow wrinkled. "She was a spit fire. And she wasn't exactly the most open to your politics."

"Neither were you," the President countered. "But look where you got! You President Bridges Chief of Staff, then mine, and then you became my VP for nine years." She cocked her head to the side. "And we made a damn good team, if I do say so myself!"

"I had always thought you'd hire Rod, once I became Vice President."

"I did too," Mac admitted quietly. "In fact, I offered it to him first. But to my surprise, he didn't want the job anymore."

"He didn't?"

"That was my reaction too." Her eyes shifted about the room. "He said he was content staying at my side, in the background. He'd grown accustom to helping out my Mother, and the kids. It sounds strange saying that even now, but in the long run, I think we all turned out better for it." The President moved to her desk for the last time. She pulled back the chair, smoothed her skirt, and sat down.

"So can I ask you something?"

"Anything."

"What was the most memorable moment during these ten years?"

Mac blinked. "August eleventh, two-thousand-fourteen." She folded her arms and leaned a little closer to the shiny wooden desk.

"August of two-thousand-fourteen…" Jim's brown creased. "The opening of the Mackenzie Allen Elementary School, in D.C.?"

Mackenzie nodded in confirmation. "It was after I cut the tape, and the Principle was giving us the tour. You had gone off to see the West Wing of the school, and I had detoured to take a look at the playground." A wistful look washed over her bright eyes.

"A little girl was getting into line just as the morning bell was ringing. But when she saw me, she tore off in my direction before her teacher could stop her. I knelt down next to her, and she introduced herself as Emma Chilton." Mac shook her head. "She couldn't have been more than five or six years old. Anyway, I asked her what was so important, and she told me that she just wanted to meet me." She unconsciously touched the side of her face. "And that she wanted to grow up and became President, just like me."

Jim couldn't help but smile. "You know what? I bet she will one day."

"I know she will." Mac blinked. "Okay, you asked a question, now it's my turn. Jim, what do you think my biggest accomplishment in this office was?"

Jim moved to the President's desk, and took a seat in the chair opposite her. "It's hard to choose just one. You've done so much. I mean, look." He spread out his arms to further emphasize his point. "You organized the Independent Party. They even have a nationally recognized color and animal."

Mac reached across the desk, touching a small gray owl that sat next to her nameplate.

"And that got the ball rolling in the Senate-"

"Which now has fourty-four Democrats and Republicans each, ten Independents, and two Libertarians," Mackenzie interjected proudly.

"And you elected an Independent to the Supreme Court." Jim laced his fingers together.

"Which I'm still very proud of," the President beamed. "Although I did get an earful from the Republicans already seated on the Supreme Court."

"And you've got the Equal Marriage Amendment in motion."

"I'm surprised you listed that one," she said suddenly.

"Well I'm not homophobic, you know."

"I know. You just always felt that it was a states' rights issue, so I'm surprised you listed that as an accomplishment."

"And I'm not saying that I've changed my mind about that," the Vice President clarified. "I'm just saying that if there were a lot more marriages like Vince's, then maybe it wouldn't be such a 'bad thing.'"

Mac nodded in understanding. "He did look good that day, didn't he? And Kelly, she was so happy to walk him down the isle."

"The ERA."

"What?"

"The ERA," Jim repeated. "That was your biggest accomplishment. Amending the Constitution to allow equal rights."

"May nineteenth, two-thousand-eight," the President recalled. "I'll never forget the day that Florida finally ratified it."

"I won't forget the first time I saw it in a school textbook," Jim confided.

"Smack dab in the middle of a page was a picture of the two of us," Mackenzie recalled. "And above, in alternating red and gray letters, it read: 'United and Equal.'"

"A black guy and a woman."

Mac blinked, surprised at his sudden choice of words. "Excuse me?"

"The day you fired Dickie," Jim Gardner explained. "We'd been discussing possible Vice Presidential candidates, and he insisted on the governor of Texas. I asked about the only African American candidate he knew of, and he said, 'Either a black guy or a woman, you can't have both.'"

"But we did."

"I think the last ten years have had more social growth than any other time in American history. You opened the doors for minorities everywhere."

"I didn't," Mac corrected, "we did. You and I. Kelly, Vince, Meril…the entire Allen Administration." She tapped her nails on the edge of the desk. "And the American people. Every single person who voted for us."

"But without you, it would've never happened," Jim argued.

"If it hadn't been me, it would've been someone else," Mackenzie Allen replied modestly. "This country was ready for change." She paused briefly, and as she parted her lips to speak again, a small buzz sounded from her phone. She pressed a blinking red button with her index finger. "Deirdre?"

"Madame President," the secretary, Deirdre, echoed from the plastic box. "Your children have just arrived. Should I send them in?"

Mackenzie glanced quickly at her Vice President, and then back down to the telephone. "No. Please tell them that I'll be down in fifteen minutes. I just need a few more minutes-"

"I understand," Deirdre's voice interrupted. "I'll let them know."

"Thank you, Deirdre."

"You're welcome."

As Mac moved to press the button again, to end the call, Deirdre's voice interrupted one last time.

"Oh, and Madame President?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you."

"What?"

"Thank you," the secretary's voice repeated. "I just wanted to thank you for the past ten years. You've been a huge inspiration in the lives of so many people, and I just wanted you to know. The end of your Presidency will be a loss, Madame President. But you've paved the way for so much more."

Mac unconsciously touched the corner of her eye. "Thank you, Deirdre. That means a lot."

"Good luck in your future."

"And yours."

President Allen paused, before she heard the click, signaling that her secretary had ended the call. She glanced up at her Vice President.

Jim stood up respectfully. "Would you like to be alone?"

Mac shook her head. "No, Jim, stay." She waved her hand, signaling him to sit back down. "I think you deserve to me here just as much as I do."

"With all do respect, Mac, this is the office of the President."

"Without her Vice President, where would she be?"

"Perfectly fine." Jim laughed. "It seems like just yesterday you were telling me that the nation had been without a Vice President for nearly a quarter of the Presidency. What makes me so special now?"

"Because you're a good man, Jim. Despite our obvious differences, you supported me and my views from people like Nathan Templeton. You were one of the few people I can truly say was a loyal employee, comrade, and above all, friend. I'll always hold you in the highest of regards."

Jim stared at his President in the quiet of the room, just enjoying her company until a small buzz echoed from his pocket. He plucked a page from his black dress slacks, and checked the number. "It's JJ," he announced, referring to his eight-year-old son, Jim Gardner, Jr. "He wants to see you before you go out to welcome the new President into office."

"See me?" Mac's brows shut up in amusement. "I'll have none of that! I had intended from the beginning to have my godson and my granddaughter to both walk out with me and greet the new President."

She was referring to JJ and Horace's nine-year-old daughter, the child of a teen pregnancy who'd been born just after Horace's Senior year ended. Mackenzie Martha Calloway. The child had been named after her grandmother and the first First Lady, Martha Washington, respectively.

"Mac-"

"I insist!"

"Are you sure?"

"It'll be fine, I promise. Besides, I think MJ would like it." She cupped her hand to the side of her mouth. "Just between you and me, I think she's got a little crush on your son."

Jim looked surprised. "I was actually thinking that he had a small crush on MJ."

"As long as we keep them away from each other in their teen years," Mac sighed.

"You handled Molly's pregnancy really well," Jim complimented. "I think, as Dickie would say, 'It scored you points with the religious right too.'"

"Well that's not why I did it," the President countered. "I never wanted Horace to be a teen father, but when he found out Molly was pregnant, I was going to support him in any way he needed me to. I think Molly's pregnancy was actually a blessing as whole for Americans. I wasn't just on the outside looking in, anymore. And that helped me to learn how to improve the system."

"And teen pregnancy rates dropped severely after you fought to have proper Sex Education taught in schools," Jim agreed. "The abstinence only policy just wasn't working. Kids are going to have sex whether we want them to or not, and it's better we teach them how to prevent unwanted pregnancy among other things, the best way we can, instead of pretending like it won't happen if we tell them not to."

Mac nodded. "I never understood how people really thought that worked. I mean, with teenage rebellion and all? Come on." She raked her hand through her glossy hair. "Looking back, I'm thankful every day that she came into our lives. Her mother is really missing out on everything."

"It's her loss. And you know, I think MJ is better because of it. She had the entire White House at her service, and I think that's far better than a mother who wanted to abort her from the beginning." Jim laughed. "Do you remember the time we walked in on one of our Secret Service men entertaining her in a tea party with her stuffed animals?"

"How could I ever forget? The poor guy looked so flustered at being caught in the act!"

"Or the Halloween when she was five and JJ was four, and they went out as Minnie and Mickey Mouse?"

"My wife has three pages in her scrap book dedicated to that night."

Mackenzie Allen crossed her left leg over her right, and leaned back in her chair. She took a deep breath. "Jim, I can't believe how these two and a half terms just flew by! My kids grew up in the blink of an eye. I mean, look! Horace is a father, Becca's working her way through Law School and has her dreams set on becoming governor and more some day, and this year is Amy's last year of school. She's a Senior already! And she doesn't know it yet, but Tommy Bridges has already talked to Rod and I about taking her to Senior Prom. I swear, they've been flirting since I agreed to be Teddy's running mate. I still remember Grace and I taking them on play dates."

Jim turned slightly, at the sound of footsteps outside the door to the Oval Office. He glanced at his Commander in Chief, before averting his eyes back to the door, where he heard the soft sound of knocking.

"Come in."

The door opened slightly, revealing the small figure of a young blonde woman. Her white-blonde hair fell in waves over her shoulders, and she had beautiful soft blue eyes. She wore a simple silver dress, dotted with pink rosebuds and a pale pink, cashmere sweater around her shoulders.

The young woman stepped cautiously into the room, her light pink ballet flats noiseless against the carpet. She held a clipboard. And before she'd even stepped all the way into the Oval Office, it was clear she was extremely pregnant. It looked like she'd hidden a beach ball under her dress. "Madame President?"

"Kelly!" Mackenzie jumped to her feet, and crossed the room to her Press Secretary. "How're you doing?"

Kelly placed a hand to her bulging stomach, and smiled warmly. "We're doing just fine."

"Are you sure you want to stay until this whole day is over with? You look like your ready to pop."

"I feel like I'm ready to pop," Kelly groaned. "But I've been with you since day one, and I refused to back down now. I just have one more day."

President Allen snaked an arm around her Press Secretary's shoulders, and pulled her into a soft embrace. "Thank you, Kelly. You've done so much for me. I don't know how I can ever thank you."

"Just promise me you'll fly out to San Francisco for the birth."

"Already done," Mac swore.

"Do you think you guy will be ready in a few minutes? You told Deirdre fifteen," Kelly glanced down at the dainty golden watch on her wrist, "and it's already been twenty-five. She sent me up here to see if there was a problem."

"Twenty-five?" Mac gaped. She looked at Jim, half amused and half surprised. "I can't believe we took that long!"

"We'd better get going." Jim stood up and quickly adjusted his ruby red tie, which contrasted handsomely against his bright white shirt and raven black suit.

Kelly glanced at Jim, and motioned her head towards the door. "Jim, your wife and son are waiting outside. Would you like to come with me, while Mac collects her things?"

"Sure." Jim moved across the floor, and headed towards the door. He stopped first before his President, though, and held out his hand. "Thank you. It was an honor."

"Likewise." Mackenzie shook Jim Gardner's hand, and then Kelly's. "I'll be down in five." Mac turned to gaze at her office. Come the end of the night, it would be a memory, and the start of a grand journey for someone else. She heard the door shut behind her, but didn't turn around. Instead, she took one last walk over to her desk. Her navy blue heels sunk into the soft carpet under her as she walked.

Mackenzie Allen rounded the desk, and opened the drawer. A silver covered book lay within it, and emblazoned on its front was a full color picture of herself, her children, Rod, Vince, Kelly, and Jim Gardner. She was, of course, the largest picture on the book. Behind them was the swaying American flag. In alternating red, white, and blue letters was the title at the top of the book. 'Hail to the Chief: The Story of an Independent Woman, Mackenzie Allen'.

Mackenzie carefully opened the front cover, revealing a dedication: 'First and foremost, this book is dedicated to my Mother. She wanted so much to see the ending to this Cinderella story, but alas, her yearning to be with my Father was too much. I know they are both looking down on us all right now, smiling. Thank you, Mom. You meant the world to me, and without you and Dad, I would not be where I am today.' Under the dedication was a full color picture of Kate Allen, sitting proudly behind desk in the Oval Office.

Mac flipped quietly through all five-hundred pages. Most were simply writing of her life, her political history, and her accomplishments as President of the Free World. The first female President. The first Independent President. Ditto for Vice President. Some had black and white pictures of her family, some of the staff from the Allen Administration, a few of her granddaughter, and even one of her first VP, Warren Keaton. The book had been released to the public only a week ago, and had already made new record sales, especially among young women and teenage girls.

Mackenzie Spencer Allen had gone down in history right alongside the greatest of Presidents: George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, and Ronald Reagan. She was a national hero. Not only for women, not only for Independents, but for the whole of the Free World.

In fact, during her entire ten year Presidency, not once had she declared war or been declared war upon. While she was in office, the rate of female voters had gone up a staggering fifty percent, and among young voters it had gone up thirty percent. Other minorities such as African American voters, third party voters, and GLBT had gone up a combined thirty percent. Under her Presidency, five other states had legalized Same-Sex Marriage which significantly brought down the divorce rate, and thanks to her stance on and passage of the Equal Rights Amendment, women now made the same wages as men. And that was only the tip of the iceberg of her achievements.

Mac extracted two framed photographs from her desk, one of her with Vince at his wedding, and one of her holding her newborn godson, JJ. She placed them atop the book, and then reached for the nameplate on her desk. As she did, she noticed the gray owl. It had been the first one made to represent the Independent Party, and had been given to her. She collected the gray owl.

President Mackenzie Spencer Allen turned on her heel and headed slowly, one foot in front of the other, across the Oval Office. Nothing but the crunching of carpet under her weight greeted her ears. Then she stopped at the doorway, opened the door, and slid her soft fingers over the light switch.

Turning around, she allowed herself one last look at the Oval Office. Then she swiped her fingers over the light switch, submerging the room into darkness. Only her silhouette remained in the center of a rectangular shaft of light from the room outside the Oval. "We had a good run." And with those words, the first female Commander in Chief shut the door to the Oval Office for the last time.


End file.
